Invalid walking support



July 11:1939. H, GLYNN 2,165,700

INVALID WALKING SUPPORT Filed July 25, 19:55 2 Sheets-Sheet 1' IN VENTOR.

' flew/y 6/ 0/7 W dA/ ATTORNEY.

July 11, 1939. H. GLYNN INVALID WALKI-NG SUPPORT v INVENTOR.

fie/w- 675/00 BY 6 v g 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEY Filed July 25, 1935 Patented July 11, 1939 UNITED STATES} FFlCE Application July 25,

7 Claims.

The invention relates to devices used for supporting invalids and which are normally arranged for removing the greater portion of the weight of the persons body from his lower limbs while still permitting of the movement of the limbs over the ground or other supporting area. as in walking and for assisting in the movement and steering of the device.

An object of the invention is to provide a device of the character described which will be light yet sturdy in construction and will provide, together with this lightness of construction, an improved wheel support affording .an easy and ex peditious locomotion and handling of the device especially in the forward and turning movements thereof.

Another object of the invention is to provide a device of the above character which will engage and properly support an invalid under the arm pits in a manner similar to the usual crutch support and will further be provided with a guard enclosing the body of the user for preventing any accidental or serious .fall of the user from the device should the user become suddenly weakened to the point of losing his strength and balance.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device of the character above which will be readily adjustable to accommodate different size persons and to regulate the ratio of supporting weight carried by the portions of the body engaged by the device and the lower limbs with the portion of the weight carried by the latter adjustable to an amount as iscomfortable to the user and as will permit the normal movement of the limbs and feet as in walking for moving the device.

The invention possesses other objects and features of advantage, some of which, with the foregoing, will be set forth in the following description of the preferred form of the invention which is illustrated in the drawings accompanying and forming part of the specification. It is to be understood, however, that variations in the showing made by'the said drawings and description may be adopted within the scope of the invention asset forth in the claims.

Referring to said drawings:

Figure l is a side elevation of an invalid walking support constructed in accordance with thepresent invention.

Figure 2 is a plan View of the device shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is an end elevation of the device.

Figure 4 is a vertical sectional view taken sub- 1935, Serial No. 33,071

stantially on the plane of the line d4 of Figure l and showing one of the upright members of the structure.

Figures 5, 6 and 7 are sectional views of various parts of the structure and are taken on the planes of the lines 5-5 and 6-6 of Figure 4, and l-'l of Figure 1 res ectively.

The invalid support, as illustrated in the ac:- companying drawings, comprises a base frame H including spaced parallel sides I2 and rounded front and rear ends l3. Mounted on the base frame and vertically extending therefrom are a set of corner posts M which slope generally towards the center of the device, both longitudinally and transversely, and are bent longitudinally adjacent their upper ends and connected to the tops of tubular uprights Hi, the latter being supported at their lower ends on cross members ll interconnecting the posts at the sides of the device. As an important feature of the present invention, there is provided at the upper ends of the posts It a complete enclosure or frame which serves to safeguard the body of the user against falling forwardly, rearwardly or sidewise from the device should his strength suddenly fail him while using the device. As part of this frame there is provided a pair of frame members l9 and El which define front and rear barriers respectively, and in order to permit the ready entry of a person into the enclosure, the member 2! may, as here shown, be hinged at one end 22 to the lateral top portion 23 of one of the posts, while the other end Ed is supported in horizontal position upon the u lateral portion 255 of the adjacent post at the opposite side of the device. If desired, the frame end 24 may be curved so as to partially surround and more fully engage the lateral post end 25.

Slidably mounted in the uprights 58 are a set of shafts 2'! across the upper ends of which are carried a pair of supports 28 for engaging the arm pits of the user. In the present device, as may be perhaps best seen from Figures 4 and 5, these supports are comprised of plates 29 fixedly secured to the tops of the shafts and formed with transverse guide slots 3i, and upholstered or padded members 32 which carry bolts 33 slidably mounted in the guide slots and u are secured by nuts 3 for holding the members. 32 in adjusted position transversely of the plates and of the device as a whole. The shafts 2'! are further supported by interconnecting struts 36 which may enter longitudinal slots 31 formed in the uprights when the arm rests and shafts are moved to a lowered position.

Means for holding the shafts 21 in vertically adjusted position in the uprights l6 here includes a plurality of registrable openings 38 and 39 provided in the uprights and shafts respectively, and a latch bar 4| which is arranged to extend between adjacent pairs of uprights and are provided with end pins 42 and 43 for entering through the openings 38 and 39 when aligned for locking the shafts and uprights against relative displacement. Preferably one of the pins 42 is of a re leasable type so as to permit of the ready engagement and disengagement of the bar 4| with the members, and, as here shown, is slidably mounted in a longitudinally extending bore 44 opening to an end of the bar 4| and is pressed to an outwardly extending position by means of a spring 46 compressed in the inner extremity of the bore and is provided with an engageable lateral projection 4'! which extends through a side slot 48 in the bar. Since, as will be understood, the several openings 38 and 39 in the shafts and uprights are arranged to register simultaneously, it is possible to position the bar 4| in a plurality of vertical positions without effecting the relative position of the shafts. This feature is taken advantage of in the present construction for using these bars as hand grips or rests engageable by the user of the device, and as will be clear, these bars may be set vertically with respect to the uprights so as to be most conveniently positioned for such engagement by the users hands. Thus, the supports 28 which are arranged for fitting under the arm pits of the user and the hand grasps 4| positioned directly therebelow provide a support for the user's body similar to that afforded by the conventional crutches.

The device of the present invention is arranged for rolling about particularly under the locomotion of the invalid using the support and is provided for this purpose with a pair of wheels 49 which are mounted to the longitudinal sides I2 of the base frame substantially at the center of the device and with their axes substantially coinciding transversely of the device. As a particularly important feature of the present construction these wheels 49 are arranged in vertical alignment with the supports 28 and the hand grasps 4| so that the weight of the invalids body will be supported directly over these Wheels 49, and in accordance with the present invention when these several parts are substantially vertically aligned the wheels 49 form the sole ground engaging and supporting means of the device. There is however, provided at the front and rear ends, other ground engageable means which serve for the most part to prevent the device from overbalancing on the wheels 49 and here comprise a pair of swiveled castors 5| which, as will perhaps be best seen from Figures 1 and 3 are arranged, in the normally vertical position of the device, in raised position over a supporting sur face so that in such position of the device the support and movement thereof is controlled exclusively by the wheels 49. This construction enables the user of the device to have a very materially improved control over its locomotion and renders the handling of the device particularly in the forward and turning movements thereof especially easy and expeditiously effected.

To increase the usefulness of the device, there is further provided a seat 52 upon which the invalid may rest and still have his legs and feet extending to the ground or other supporting area so that these parts of the body may be caused to move to simulate an actual walking condition and at the same time propel the vehicle and control the direction of its movement. In the present arrangement this seat 52 is hinged at an end 53 thereof to one of the cross members I1 and extends transversely across the device, and normally rests with its other end 54 engaging over the opposite cross member I1. When the device is to be used exclusively with the invalid supported in an upright position, that is over the arm rests 28, the seat may be, if desired, elevated, as shown in Figures 1 and '7, to engage the end 54 against one of the lateral top portions 23 of one of the posts M. In the present arrangement, the seat end 54 is provided with reverse curves 51 and 58 arranged to fit over the members I1 and 23 respectively, and is formed with a slot 59 at the juncture of the curves to engage over a spring catch 6| carried by the member 56 for holding the seat in upright position.

I claim:

1. An invalid walking support comprising, a frame, a pair of transversely spaced supports mounted on said frame and arranged to engage the arm pits of the user, hand supports mounted on said frame under said first supports, and a pair of wheels mounted on said frame With their axes in vertical alignment under said first and second named supports and forming the sole ground engaging means when said supports and Wheels are vertically aligned as aforesaid, and means on said frame spaced from said wheels for supporting said device in an inclined position of said supports.

2. A device of the character described comprising, an elongated base frame, a pair of ground engaging wheels mounted on said frame at the sides thereof and having substantially coincident transversely extending axes, other ground engaging means carried by said frame at the ends thereof but raised with respect to said wheels, uprights carried by said frame, and arm and hand rests secured to said uprights in substantially vertically aligned posititon over said wheels.

3. In a device of the character described, a wheel support, posts secured thereto, a frame secured at the upper ends of said posts, a pair of horizontally extending opposed cross members interconnecting said posts below said frame and substantially parallel to certain sides of said frame, a seat having one end hinged to one of said cross members and arranged to be supported at its other end on the other of said cross members in a horizontal position of said seat and being movable to an upright position to engage said last named seat end with said frame side above said first cross member, said last named seat end being formed with reverse curves arranged to fit over said cross member and frame side respectively.

4. In a device of the character described, a wheel support, tubular uprights secured thereto, shafts slidable in said uprights, supporting means carried by said shafts for engaging under the arms of the user, said uprights and shafts each being provided with a plurality of registrable openings, and a latch bar engaging in said openings for securing the shafts and uprights in adjusted posititon, and being vertically adjustable relative to said shafts and positioned under said means to define hand grips for the user.

5. An invalid walking support comprising, a roll about wheel supported base frame, vertically extending corner posts secured thereto, an elevated frame at the top of said posts, cross members interconnecting intermediate portions of said posts, tubular uprights secured to and extending between said cross members and last named frame, shafts slidably carried in said uprights, supporting means carried by said shafts for engaging under the arms of the user, said uprights and shafts each having a plurality of registrable openings, and a pair of latch bars provided at their ends with pins for extending through said openings and locking said shafts and uprights in adjusted position and being adjustable relative to said shafts and serving as engageable hand grasps for the user.

6. In a device of the character described, a frame, supports on said frame adapted for en gagement with the arm pits of the user, ground engaging Wheels on said frame and mounted with the axes thereof under said supports, and other ground engaging means on said frame and elevated from the bottom of said wheels with said frame positioned to vertically align said supports and wheel axes and providing together with said wheels a balanced support for said device when the latter is tilted about the axes of said wheels from a vertical to an inclined position.

7. An invalid walking support comprising, a substantially horizontal base frame, horizontally spaced vertically extending supporting means each provided with a top support for the armpits of the user and a support thereunder for engagement by the users hands, Wheels carried by said frame under said means for supporting said frame in elevated position over a supporting surface, the axes of said wheels and said supports being positioned in a common plane substantially perpendicular to said frame so as to place said supports and wheel axes in vertical alignment in a horizontal position of said frame, said frame being tiltable about the axes of said wheels from a horizontal to an inclined position thereby displacing said supports to one side of a vertical position over said wheel axes, and means on said frame spaced from the axes of said Wheels and elevated from the bottom of said wheels in a horizontal position of said frame and serving with said wheels to support said frame in said inclined position thereof.

HENRY GLYNN. 

